New Delhi, October 1: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will carry out special quality inspections of 17 under-construction National Highway projects where contractors quoted more than 15 per cent below the estimated project cost.
The exercise will cover projects costing more than ₹500 crore each that have reached between 35 per cent and 80 per cent physical progress, bringing projects with substantial construction already completed under additional scrutiny.
The special inspections will be conducted in addition to NHAI’s regular quality checks and are intended to identify potential construction-related issues at an early stage so that corrective measures can be taken during project execution.
The first round of inspections is scheduled to be completed by December 2026. The same projects will undergo another inspection after six months, with the second assessment carried out by a different team of experts.
NHAI has constituted a pool of 39 experienced engineers drawn from government organisations, including the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Defence and state public works departments. Technical experts will also assist the inspection teams.
The 17 projects are spread across Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh and include greenfield and access-controlled corridors, bypasses and four- and six-laning works.
During the inspections, teams will examine compliance with approved drawings, technical specifications, contract conditions and project-specific quality plans.
Construction materials, workmanship and construction methods will also be scrutinised, along with records relating to sampling and testing. Road safety measures, traffic management and environmental safeguards will be examined wherever applicable.
Any work found to be below prescribed standards will be identified for corrective action in accordance with the relevant contract provisions.
NHAI expects the exercise to also help identify recurring quality issues and construction practices and highlight areas where greater accountability may be required from contractors, consultants and other project stakeholders.
The authority said the initiative is part of its efforts to strengthen quality monitoring of National Highway projects and ensure that potential deficiencies are identified and addressed while construction is still underway.
